[Applications of the normal standard dose in clinical practice]

On the basis of experience in the François-Baclesse Centre, the practical consequences of the application of the N.S.D. of Ellis are reviewed and in particular : -- the effects of overdose and subdosage in the volume irradiated; -- interpretation of dose at the site of complications; -- the definition of doses of tolerance in critical organs; -- the establishment of optimal dosimetry in the treatment of skin cancers. Despite the approximate character of the exponents used by Ellis and the theoretical discussions which his formula may provoke, it is concluded that it provides the radiotherapist at the present time which a good practical guide and that, within the limitations of the study presented, the clinical results fall within expectations.